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Doctor Who: The E Space Trilogy [DVD]
 
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Doctor Who: The E Space Trilogy [DVD]

DVD ~ Tom Baker
4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
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Frequently Bought Together

Doctor Who: The E Space Trilogy [DVD] + Doctor Who - Battlefield [DVD] + Doctor Who - Four To Doomsday [DVD] [1981]
Total RRP: £74.97
Price For All Three: £29.84

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Product details

  • Actors: Tom Baker, Lalla Ward, Matthew Waterhouse, John Leeson
  • Format: PAL
  • Language English
  • Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
  • Number of discs: 3
  • Classification: PG
  • Studio: 2 Entertain
  • DVD Release Date: 26 Jan 2009
  • Run Time: 275 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B001MWRTUY
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 2,348 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

    Popular in this category:

    #43 in  DVD > Television > Science Fiction & Fantasy

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DVD Description
The E-Space Trilogy contains the following:

Full Circle: The Doctor discovers the TARDIS has fallen into E-Space and landed on the planet Alzarius. Its only inhabitants live on a vast, dilapidated spaceship which they have been attempting to repair for generations in order to return to their home planet. But Mistfall, a legendary time of terror, is coming again to Alzarius, and an eerie menace is rising out of the misty marshes. The Doctor and Romana must solve the riddle of the strange Marshmen if they are to have any chance of returning to their own universe.

State of Decay: Searching for a way out of E-Space, the Doctor and Romana, joined by a young stowaway, land on an Earth-like planet. Here the people live in fear of 'the Three who Rule'; cruel lords who live in a high tower overlooking their village. Suppressing all learning to keep their subjects ignorant and helpless, what chilling secret are these ruthless monarchs concealing? An ancient evil is rising once again and only the Doctor and Romana can destroy it.

Warriors’ Gate: A strange creature forces its way into the TARDIS steering them to a white void occupied only by the ruins of an old building and a spaceship. This empty space is a gateway to the past and future and the creature responsible for taking them there is Biroc, a Tharil, an enslaved race. The gateway offers the only exit out of E-Sapce, but the void is contracting. Are the Doctor and his friends fated to spend eternity in E-Space? And what final shock revelation awaits the Doctor?

Special Features:

Disc 1 - Full Circle


Commentary – with actor Matthew Waterhouse, writer Andrew Smith and script editor Christopher H. Bidmead.
All Aboard the Starliner – cast and crew look back at the making of this story.
K-9 in E-Space – a look at the robot dog's role in the E-Space arc. With actors Lalla Ward, John Leeson, script editor Christopher H Bidmead, writers Andrew Smith and Terrance Dicks.
Swap Shop – Noel Edmonds chats to Matthew Waterhouse and takes calls from viewers of the Saturday morning entertainment show after Waterhouse's first appearance as Adric.
E-Space – Fact or Fiction? - Could E-Space really exist? A look at the science behind the concept of Exo-Space featuring script editor Christopher H Bidmead, visual effects designer (and Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society) Mat Irvine, authors Stephen Baxter and Paul Parsons, planetary scientist Dr Andrew Ball and astronomer and television presenter Sir Patrick Moore.
Continuity – BBC continuity announcements from the original transmission.
Photo Gallery
Isolated Score
Coming Soon
PDF Material
Programme Subtitles
Subtitle Production Notes

Disc 2 - State of Decay

Commentary with actor Matthew Waterhouse, director Peter Moffatt and writer Terrance Dicks.
The Vampire Lovers – cast and crew look back at the making of this story.
Film Trims – mute 35mm film trims from the model effects filming for the story, featuring alternative takes of the Tower and the scout ship staking the Great Vampire.
Leaves of Blood – a history of Vampires in literary fiction featuring authors Ramsey Campbell, Stephen Gallagher, Kim Newman, Pete Crowther, Simon Clark, Alison L R Davies, Chris Fowler and vampire specialist Dr Tina Rath.
The Blood Show – a fascinating insight into the use and meaning of blood in society and culture.
The Frayling Reading – cultural historian Sir Christopher Frayling looks at State of Decay with reference to the vampire stories of film and literature.
Continuity – BBC continuity announcements from the original transmission.
Photo Gallery
Isolated Score
Coming Soon
PDF Material
Programme Subtitles
Subtitle Production Notes

Disc 3 - Warriors' Gate

Commentary with actors Lalla Ward and John Leeson, director Paul Joyce, script editor Christopher H Bidmead and visual effects designer Mat Irvine.
The Dreaming – cast and crew look back at the troubled making of this story.
The Boy with the Golden Star – actor Matthew Waterhouse looks back on his time on the show.
Lalla's Wardrobe – a trip through Romana's time on the show via the medium of the many costumes actress Lalla Ward wore along the way. It’s a one-off Frockumentary like you’ve never seen before.
Extended and Deleted Scenes – missing scenes from an earlier edit of ep. two.
Continuity – BBC1 continuity announcements from the original transmission.
Photo Gallery
Isolated Score
Easter Egg – Mat Irvine talks about the Gundan axes and his own on-screen role in Warriors' Gate.
Coming Soon
PDF Material
Programme Subtitles
Production Notes

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Customer Reviews

18 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (18 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars The Bidmead/JN-T vision - for better and worse..., 9 Feb 2009
By John R. Gordon (London, London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Chris Bidmead (who wrote Tom Baker's swan-song Logopolis) as script-editor, & John Nathan-Turner, as producer of Doctor Who, favoured a return to 'hard' sci-fi (that is, the foregrounding in the narrative of quite elaborate & difficult scientific concepts such as Charged Vacuum Emboitments) for Tom Baker's final season. Hence this 'trilogy' - very loosely framed by the Doctor & Romana becoming trapped in E-Space, a smaller universe somehow external to our own, & having to escape from it back into our N-(normal)-Space. I'm ambivalent about the merits of this approach. The final story in the trilogy, Warriors' Gate, has, to my mind, a near-incomprehensible denoument, and throughout lacks proper attention to the basic story-telling. Script-editor, writer and director all laugh on the commentary-track about how now it's on dvd you can watch it over & over & perhaps finally understand it, but the fact is that it barely makes sense, & less chat about CVEs and the like, and more attentio to dramatic & psychological density and depth, would have produced a more gripping result.

Interesting, in State of Decay, the vampire story, Bidmead rewrote Terrance Dicks' script massively (to Dicks' chagrin) in line with his more science-fictional vision and the director, who'd originally agreed to direct the story because of its Hammer-Horror gothicism, refused to do the job unless they went back to Dicks' original script, which they did - a singularly rare occurrence in television or film. Dicks does concede that Bidmead contributed the entertaining rocket denoument.

Everyone is quite candid about Tom Baker & Lalla Ward's tempestuous off-screen relationship, pointing out that on a bad day Tom refuses to look at Lalla in their scenes together. Lalla is fairly cold about Adric as a character, & I did feel a bit sorry for Matthew Waterhouse being thrown into such an emotionally-wrought setting. He himself in his interviews is quite endearing and unpretentious.

Rewatching the stories I actually enjoyed all of them: all contain nice ideas and the odd sharp line and image, and Lalla's outfits are rightly celebrated. But I found the pace and use of language stodgy by comparison with the Graham Williams/Douglas Adams stories. I was also struck by the similarity of set-ups in all three stories. In Full Circle the characters moulder away in an endless round of pointless maintenance chores on a crashed Star-liner. In State of Decay the vampiritic Lords moulder away in courtly parasitism in the ruins of a crashed rocket. In Warriors' Gate the crew moulder away on a crashed space-ship unable to escape the inertia of their situation. Perhaps this reflects that late-70s sensibility that Britain itself was mouldering away inertly, the crashed ruin of its imperial glory...

I like actors, so didn't want to find Adric such an unappealing character on re-viewing his debut, but I just don't take to Matthew Waterhouse's performance. But then I also feel he wasn't really given a proper character to play. Nathan-Turner's original concept was of an 'Artful Dodger' - but then he cast the utterly public-schoolish Waterhouse - who wondered after being offered the part if he was going to be asked to affect a Cockney accent. Certainly there seems to have been little attempt to integrate him psychologically into the trilogy - Tom & Lalla don't become stand-in parents or older siblings or scary magical figures to Adric: everyone just blodges through the dialogue, which is somewhat randomly assigned.

Everyone seems to hate poor old K-9, who is rather side-lined here.

Overall, I enjoyed the E-Space Trilogy but feel that the price of pushing up the level of scientific conceptualisation proved to be letting the psychological maturity of character & dramatic situation deteriorate.

Interestingly, despite a certain amount of technobabble, the next story, The Keeper of Traken, worked almost entirely as a fable and has almost no scientific feel to it at all: it's only with Tom Baker's final story that Bidmead gets to fully express his vision for the show - & does so very effectively, I think.
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33 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Tom Baker at his best...., 31 Dec 2008
By andy "andy" (Cornwall, England UK) - See all my reviews
Well, here it is. One of the best sections of Doctor Who that was made.
There can be no denying that John Nathan Turner, much as people grew to loath him for what happened to the programme in its later years under his 'care', did great things in his first season as producer.
This season does away with the rather silly humour that had crept in in the late 70's, (all the more poignant when JNT made the same mistake in the McCoy era and introduced too much humour) and replaced it with a more serious sci-fi air that had not really been seen since Pertwee's first season.
A raft of good stories, and Tom Baker in atmospherically subdued form; some people say the tone of this season was funereal, and all the better for it.
And so to the E-Space trilogy. What a brilliant concept. Doctor Who had done parallel worlds before, and Russel T Davies would do so again in the new series. But here we have a slightly different spin on the idea; that of a negative universe with negative co-ordinates. It made perfect sense to the 10 year old me, who was doing negative co-ordinates in Maths at school and i found the idea fascinating. I still do 28 years later.
The stories are great;
Full Circle, is in some ways a classic Who; people trapped in a confined space; a horrible monster lurking about, and Tom Baker and Lalla Ward on good form.
But the story is intriguing, and i won't give it away.
Its a shame that good use wasn't made of K9 here, as in many stories, the writers simply get him out of the way to avoid writing for him. But, there are some good moments nonetheless.
This story is notable for introducing the character of Adric, a companion hated by many.
I rather liked him as a viewer back then as he was a change to the tiresome screaming girls that had been around for seemingly ever, (i was ten!) and i thought it was great that there should be a boy companion.
I think Adric was a really good idea, and was well realised by Matt Waterhouse, and was exactly as he should have been portrayed, so i have trouble seeing why people don't like the character. In the Davison era he would go on to contribute well to the Tardis 'family' which made the show more interesting and enjoyable then. Oh well, each to their own!
State of Decay is a Terrance Dicks masterpiece, has vampires, a civilisation descended from the crew of an ancient space ship and sees technology lost and a people in decline. This is fantastic stuff and has some genuinely creepy moments.
The last story Warriors Gate is perhaps the most confusing and needs to be watched a few times for it to make sense, but, without giving anything away, it sees a goodbye or two, another fascinating concept and higher than average production values. The model work is good and the incidental music evokes real atmosphere.

I cannot think of any negatives here really. These three tales stand up well today. Obviosly the effetcs are of their time, but very good considering that, and there are some impressive shots in the last story particularly.

This set of stories really is top notch. This is Doctor Who at its finest and should be added to anyones collection.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A brave attempt to put the 'sci' back into Sci-fi, 26 May 2009
By Binro The Heretic "mattieboyz" (Hillsborough, Sheffield) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)      
As Tom Baker's record-breaking tenure in the role neared its end, the eighteenth season of Doctor Who threw up some of the series' most controversial and fascinating serials.

First up here, is the story that brought us the mathematically excellent but personality-challenged Adric; as The Doctor and his Time Lady companion Romana are drawn into a `pocket-universe' known only as `E-Space', where they are to remain for a further two stories.

Full-Circle is a moody and absorbing adventure, and one that sees Tom Baker in weary and irritable mode throughout; no doubt reflecting the cracks in his personal life and his momentous decision to quit the role that had defined him for nearly a decade. The story itself has some great `monsters' in the skilfully designed Marshmen, and sees the odious Adric stow away in the TARDIS after seeing his brother Varsh killed by the marsh creatures. Naturally, I remember this serial being much more accomplished; the spiders are frankly laughable - they look like they've been made on Blue Peter - but as Lalla Ward says in the making-off documentary 'All Aboard the Skyliner': The sheer imagination of the stories and the performances of the actors enabled the classic series to transcend its budgetary limitations and lack of filming time. George Baker brings gravitas and polish as Decider Login, whilst despite his weariness, Tom Baker puts in a decent performance; his anger at the Deciders for their procrastination shows the actor at his best.

Full Circle has a good selection of DVD extras, including the aforementioned featurette, which sees George Baker, Lalla Ward, writer Andrew Smith, Script-Editor Christopher Hamilton Bidmead, and a couple of minor players reminisce fondly about the serial, whilst Tom Baker and Matthew Waterhouse are conspicuous by their absence. It also has an all too brief segment titled 'K9 in E-space', where various cast and crew discuss air their views on whether the metal mutt was a boon or a curse. 'E-Space Fact or Fiction' sees a group of scientists and writers, including the venerable Sir Patrick Moore, pontificating about the theoretical possibility of parallel universes. Narrated by Sophie Aldred, this is another random but enjoyable featurette.

State of Decay is interestingly the most OTT of the trilogy, and this is partially explained in the making-of featurette where we discover that director Peter Moffat and writer Terrance Dicks persuaded JNT to use Dicks' original script rather than Script Editor Christopher Bidmead's revised (and more scientific) version. The story itself is a fun Gothic Hammer horror, where the TARDIS crew land on a planet inhabited by vampires and The Doctor discovers a link to his home world Gallifrey. Vaguely camp but still engaging; State of Decay is undermined by a poorly realised climactic scene but Rhys Emrys' scenery-chewing turn as vampire Aukon fits the tone of the serial perfectly and creates one of Doctor Who's more memorable characters.

DVD extras include the obligatory commentaries, aforementioned making-of documentaries, film trims...and photo galleries; plus a few loosely-linked featurettes on vampire myths and their roots which are okay but a bit random.

Final serial Warrior's Gate is the most ambitious of the three in the E-Space story arc and is Doctor Who at its bonkers best. Utterly barmy and utterly wonderful it represents what is arguably the show's most ambitious serial in its long history. With the leonine `time sensitive' Tharils; a superb spaceship that was clearly based on the Nostromus from Alien; a continuation of the season's Gothic feel; and a surreal nay perplexing plot; It is also memorable for including the departure of Romana and K9.

Overall this box set showcases a period of transition in the show's long history, and these are not populist stories but intelligent and - thanks to Christopher Hamilton Bidmead - scientifically more interesting than some of the lighter serials before and after.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Loved the E Space trilogy
We all really enjoyed this trilogy of episodes from Tom Baker's era. It was good to find out where Adric came from in Full Circle although the biological facts behind it sound... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Tessa Gee

5.0 out of 5 stars "A Trilogy of Toms"
A very fine boxset
Full Circle is a well crafted tale and it's a great shame Andrew Smith never wrote again for the show. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Bob Marlowe

4.0 out of 5 stars a whole new universe
three doctor who stories originally broadcast in 1980 and 1981 as part of tom baker's final season in the role. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Paul Tapner

4.0 out of 5 stars ancient fan
I fisrt started watching Doctor Who when the First Episode was broadscast
many years ago, I haven't seen the " E Space " episdoes since they were first broadcast. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Ronald

5.0 out of 5 stars three good additions in Season 18
Different for Dr Who and contains an extra freshness that began in 'The Leisure Hive' and continued for the rest of Tom Baker's final year. Read more
Published 4 months ago by L. Whitehurst

2.0 out of 5 stars ONLY FOR FANS!
The 'E-SPACE' Trilogy. I think E stands for Empty. Just what these stories are.
It is many peoples belief that as long as Tom baker is the Doctor, it's a good episode. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mr. R. Porter

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic adventures in time & space: the E-Space Trilogy
It's been awhile since I've been treated to real, classic Doctor Who, and this box set remedies that very well: not one, but three brilliant stories from the final season starring... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Tony

4.0 out of 5 stars Classic Tom Baker Variety
An excellent box set for anyone who still likes Tom Baker as the Doctor. There is a variety within this set with some of the stories better than others. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Paul Morris

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice set of Stories
The three stories in this trilogy are all linked by the Doctor's (and Romana' and K9's adventures in e-space - a universe outside our own. Read more
Published 4 months ago by JA Fairhurst

5.0 out of 5 stars A trip to excellence space.
These three stories are the undoubted highlight of Tom Bakers final season of Doctor Who. First story "Full Circle" is probably the best serial of the season, demonstrating an... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mr. R. A. Perry

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